Clothespin



A. L HOEHN.

CLOTHESPIN.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 31, I920.

1,373,729. Patented Apr. 5, 19 21 m A x/swz JAM/2 @511 M abtozwm omreo STATES PATJEN T: curios.

ALFRED :rwnonnn, onnnw YORK, 'N. Y. a V

Specification of Letters Patent.

PatehteaApr. 5,1921.

I Application filed July 31, 1920. Serial No. 400,370.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I ALFRED J. HonHN, a citizen of the United gtates, and resident of New York city in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clothespins, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to clothes pins. The object of the invention is to provide an improved clothes in consisting in its preferred form of a single piece of wire which is bent to form a hook at its one end adapted to engage over the clothes and clothes line, while the other end of the wire is bent to form a hook for securing the clothes pin in position on the clothes line. The improved wire clothes pin as herein disclosed is designed to be used in connection with an ordinary clothes line.

Referring to the accompanying drawing illustrating the invention,

Figure 1 is a view in elevation of a clothes pin embodying my invention, the clothes pin being shown in substantially the same position it occupies when in use.

Fig. 2 is a left hand end of the clothes pin.

Fig. 3 is a right hand end view of the clothes pin.

Fig. 4 is a top view.

Fig. 5 is a top View showing the clothes pin in use.

My improved clothes pin comprises a handle or body portion 6 which is preferably straight. At the one end, to the left, the wire is bent upward to form a clothes engaging hook 7 in a plane substantially parallel to the vertical plane of the body portion 6. The upper or loop portion 8 of the hook 7 may be bent slightly backward or out of the plane of the hook 7. The term backward is used with reference to the position in which the pin is held when applied as will appear hereinafter. The free end 9 of the hook 7 is preferably bent forwardly of the plane of the hook to afford easy engagement over the clothes and clothes line.

The opposite end of the wire is bent to form a line engaging or looking hook 10 in a plane at substantially a right angle to the plane of the hook 7. The free end 11 of the hook 10 is bent forwardly and slightly upwardly with respect to thebody portion 6.

The hooks 7 and 10 are made of sufficient Thereafter the clothes pin is swung to the right in the direction of the arrow 15 and the hook 10 is hooked over the line by first passing the hook under the line and then pulllng it forward so that the line gets caught 1n the loop of the hook as shown.

By reason of the fact that the two hooks are at substantially right angles to each' other it follows that in securing the hook 10 the hook 7, is twisted with respect to the clothes line and firmly held in position. Any tendency on the part of the hook 10 to leave the line simply tightens the grip of the clothes engaging hook 7 as is obvious. However, the clothes pin is easily detached by pushing back on the hook 10 and pulling forward on the line.

The slightly curvilinear form of the hook 7 makes it easier to slide the hook down over the clothes and the line, than would be the case were the hook perfectly straight.

My improved clothes pin is very simple in construction and inexpensive to make. It will preferably be made from galvanized wire to prevent soiling the clothes from rust.

I am aware that it has been attempted to provide clothes pins in which a somewhat similar principle of application has been shown as that herein disclosed and as illustrated in Fig. 5 but such attempts to my knowledge do not include a clothes pin made from a single piece of wire, but disclose a clothes pin either made of wood and easily broken, or to clothes pins made in more than one piece whichare of a different construction and more expensive.

I claim:

1. As a new article of manufacture, a clothes pin made of a single piece of wire and comprising a straight body portion, a clothes engaging hook formed at the one end of said body portion, said clothes engaging hook being in a plane substantially parallel to a' plane through the center of said body Q genome portion, a line engaging hook formed at the hooked over the clothes one clothes line, the other end of the said body portion, said line other end of said body portion beingbent to 10 engaging hook being in a plane at right anform a horizontally pointing hook adapted glee to the said body portion. .l V to engage the clothes line to cause the said 2. As a new article of manufacture, a wire' first mentioned hook to assume an oblique clothes pin comprising a straight body porposition on the clothes line. tion, one end of which is bent to form a' downwardly pointing hook adapted to be ALFRED J. HOEHN, 

